Powerful female names from mythology

Scheherazade

Persian

"noble lineage"

Scheherazade -- or Sheherazade --is a legendary Persian queen immortalized as the narrator of all one thousand stories in the One Thousand and One Nights . Her story is even more remarkable than the…

Anat

Hebrew

"answer"

In Semitic mythology, Anat was the goddess of fertility, hunting, and war. It is a familiar choice for girls in Israel.

Antigone

Greek

"worthy of one's parents, in place of one's parents"

In Greek mytholgy, Antigone was the noble and courageous daughter of Oedipus, who acts as his guide after he blinds himself. Antigone is also the eponymous heroine of a play by Jean Anouilh. Despite…

Artemis

Greek mythology

"safe; butcher"

Artemis, one of the key figures of the female Greek pantheon, is the ancient virgin goddess of the hunt, wilderness, animals, childbirth, and a protector of young girls, later associated with the…

Morrigan

Irish

"phantom queen"

The mythological Morrigan was the ancient goddess of war, often symbolized by a crow. Besides being a name, this is also used as a proper noun preceded by an article: the Morrigan, defined as a…

Medea

Greek

"middle"

Mythological princess who killed her kids. Eternal no-no.

Clytemnestra

Greek

"famous courter"

In Greek legend Clytemnestra was the wife of Agamemnon, mother of Orestes and Electra. She took a lover while her husband was away fighting in the Trojan War, and upon his return she had him killed…

Atalanta

Greek mythology name

"equal in weight"

Atalanta was a beautiful mythological maiden who refused to marry any man who couldn't beat her in a footrace -- quite a role model. This myth is found in Ovid's Metamorphoses and later in…

Circe

Greek

"bird, hawk"

In Greek myth, Circe, daughter of Helios, the sun, was a sorceress living on the island of Aeaea (or Aiaia) who could turn men into animals with her magic wand, which is just what she did to…

Ixchel

Mayan

"lady rainbow"

A distinctive mythological name. likely derived from the Maya elements of ix and chel meaning "lady" and "rainbow" respectively, Ixchel was a Mayan Goddess associated with the moon, pregnancy,…

Gaea

Gaea is a feminine name derived from Greek mythology, where Gaea (also spelled Gaia) was the primordial goddess who personified Earth itself. The name literally means 'earth' in Ancient Greek and…

Parvati

Sanskrit

"the daughter of the mountain"

This Hindu goddess name is very popular in India. The goddess of love, fertility and devotion, representing female force, Parvati is the wife of Shiva and the mother of Ganesh. There is a Harry…

Pele

Hawaiian goddess of fire

Pele is a female name in Hawaiian culture that could make a provocative choice for a modern girls. Others might think you named your daughter after the all-time great soccer player, but the simple,…

Yemaya

Spanish variant of Yemọja, Yoruba

"mother of fish"

A Spanish form of the Yoruba goddess name, Yemọja, this variation is used by the Afro-American community in South America and in the Caribbean. In Yoruba tradition, Yemọja (meaning "mother of fish")…